1. Filed of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of safety devices worn by a driver when operating a high-performance vehicle. More specifically, the present invention relates to a restraint device that controls movement of, and reduces forces applied to, a driver's head, neck and spine when the driver is subjected to high acceleration and vibration forces, such as those forces that may occur during a drag race, and also when the driver is subjected to deceleration forces that occur during a collision event.
2. Description of the Related Art
Traditionally, drivers of high-performance vehicles have employed standard five or six point seat belt assemblies, in which all of the belts tie into a common buckle, to restrain the driver during racing. Although standard seat belt assemblies are effective in constraining the torso of the driver to the seat assembly during a collision event, they do not restrain the driver's head or neck. As such, the driver's head may move forward, rearward, sideways or oscillate side-to-side depending of the forces being applied to the driver.
In recent years, head and neck restraint devices have become widely used in various racing venues such as NASCAR®, formula and stock to control forward and downward motion of a driver's head, and to reduce tension loading in a driver's neck, in the event of a collision. Well-known devices for this purpose include Hutchens Device®, R-3™, Hutchens II™, Hutchens Hybrid™ and Hans Device®.
With regards to drag racing, due to the exceptional amount of g-forces during take-off (i.e. launch), a single strap has been used to restrain the driver's head from snapping backwards during initial acceleration (launch) of the vehicle. The strap is a single point attachment, meaning that it is attached at one end to the center-line of the helmet's chin bar and at the other end to the vehicle's seat belt assembly, i.e. the seat belt buckle. This strap provides assistance to the driver during launch, but has little utility in frontal, angular frontal and side impacts, or during vibration of the vehicle.
During a drag race, high acceleration and speeds cause the tires to go out-of-round, resulting in vibration of the vehicle. Since the single point attachment strap acts like a pendulum, providing little resistance to this side-to-side movement, this vibration has been known to cause severe side-to-side oscillation of the driver's head which can lead to loss of control of the vehicle or cause injury or even death by banging the driver's head against the interior of the vehicle.
Accordingly, there is a need in the art of continued improvement of head and neck restraint devices and tethering systems to protect drivers during a collision event regardless of the direction if impact and to improve the driver's safety in a greater variety of racing venues and operating conditions.